Duke Behnke's Q&A: Why are we all gung-ho about putting in roundabouts?

Sep. 8, 2012

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Post-Crescent staff writer

Q: Why are we all gung-ho about putting in roundabouts? They’re taking out all of the roundabouts out East because they’re too hard to plow and are putting in stop-and-go lights again.

Q: Why is the government putting in roundabouts that cannot accommodate semis? I see so many semis driving up on that center section, which cannot support the weight of the truck.

A: Roundabouts have elicited more questions from readers than any other topic. Despite resistance from some motorists, the circular intersections are here to stay because they provide a more efficient and safer control of intersections than traffic lights or four-way stop signs.

Gerry Kaiser, Neenah’s deputy director of public works and utilities, has been working with roundabouts since Neenah constructed its first one in 2005. Neenah now has 12 roundabouts, including a three-lane roundabout at Winneconne Avenue and S. Green Bay Road, the city’s busiest intersection.

Kaiser said he’s not aware of any modern roundabouts that have been converted to signalized intersections. Roundabouts occasionally are confused with rotaries and traffic circles, two other forms of circular intersections, but they have different design and operating characteristics.

Rotaries have much larger diameters than modern roundabouts, which result in higher operating speeds. The term traffic circle encompasses everything from small traffic-calming circles on neighborhood streets to very large circular intersections that are signalized.

“There have been rotaries and traffic circles that have been signalized, converted to signalized intersections, or converted to modern roundabouts,” Kaiser said.

Regarding the second question, roundabouts are built with a concrete truck apron — the area between the circulatory traffic lanes and the central island — to accommodate the large turning radii of semitrailer trucks, so it’s perfectly fine for the rear wheels of these trailers to roll over the apron.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, the truck apron typically is a different color (red) than the street pavement “to discourage routine use by smaller vehicles,” but it is strong enough to support the weight of trucks.